Shoulder-brace.



Agwonezs. SHOULDER BRACE- APPLICATION FILED APR. I0. 19!?- Patented 10%.. 4,1917.

F/ 6.5, WITIVESSES: INVENTOR g/ M M VK m y W, By

ARTHUR HODGES, OF SANDS EOINT, NEW YORK.

SHOULDER-BEACH.

aaaeeo.

' Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. d, 1W1 7..

Application filed April 10, 1917. Serial No. 161,074.

To all to ham it may concern:

Be it known that I, Ami-Ion Honens, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Sands Point, in the county of Nassau and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Shoulder-Braces, oi? which. the following is a specification.

This invention relates to braces and has for one of its objects a means whereby round shouldered individuals are. induced automatically to throw their shoulders back. Heretofore braces have been provided tending to mechanically constrain the individual to throw his shoulders back. However by means of this invention the patient automatically does what is required of him by virtue of a slight restraint Whose normal tendency would appear to be to cause the individual to become more round shouldered than ever. A means whereby the desired result is secured is disclosed in the following description taken together with the accompanying drawings.

Figure l shows a rear view of the brace applied to a patient.

Fig. 2 is a front view of the same showing means whereby the normal tension of the brace can be changed as desired.

Fig. 3 shows a modified form of the brace in that the whole brace is made of substantially the same elastic material.

The brace 1 is preferably made in three parts, viz. two leg pieces, 2, and an adjustable body piece, 8. The adjustability is not an absolute requisite for my invention for the brace can be made up of one piece if desired, but I have not illustrated this simpler form because the modification is so palpably obvious. Buckles 4 are provided, which latter can either be arranged for mounting in leather adjusting pieces, 5, shown in Fig. 2, or can be made to pass through the body strip 3 as illustrated in Fig. 8.

In either form of brace after passing the body portion about the neck there should always be a light tension in the brace as a whole tending to make the patient stoop, but by virtue of natural reaction the patient will in fact straighten out and take up a more erect posture. The elastic portion of the brace can be wholly in the body portion 3, or it be in the leg appurtenance, 6,

to which the loops or leg portions, 2, are attached. It may also be in both portions.

In the types of braces used heretofore the idea has been to force the individual to take up an erect position by some sort of set mechanical restraint. The consequence is the patient falls into the habit of relying on the set or forced constraint to take up the required posture, whereas by means of the invention the patient himself of his own volition is induced to take up an attitude in direct opposition to the one it is intended to cure him of.

Having described the nature of my invention, what I claim is:

1. A brace comprising two leg-loops each provided with a strap adapted to extend upwardly over the abdomen, and a continuous flexible and elastic strap, adapted to extend directly around the back of the neck of the wearer downwardly over the shoulclers, and connected to the straps from the leg-loops.

2. A brace comprising two leg-loops each provided with a strap adapted to extend upwardly over the abdomen, and a continuous flexible and elastic strap, adapted to extend directly around the back of the neck of the wearer downwardly over the shoulders, and adjustable means to connect the elastic strap to the straps from the leg-loops.

Signed at Lakewood in the county of Ocean and State of New Jersey this 29th day of March, A. D. 1917.

ARTHUR HODGES.

lVitnesses:

' PAULINE CHAPIN Honors,

EMMA T. GnAnFmi.

topics or this patent may be obtained. for five cents each, by addressing the Go nmissioner of Patenta, Washington, D. U, 

